kabbalah and contemporary cosmology 133The Universe: Myth and MeaningLet us return to contemporary cosmology. Science has no consensus on the
ultimate origin. Some theories espouse a well-defined beginning; others, like
Stephen Hawking’s, do not. But both suggest a radically new reading of Gen-
esis. If God spoke the world into being, the divine language is energy; the
alphabet, elementary particles; God’s grammar, the laws of nature.^9 Many sci-
entists have sensed a spiritual dimension in the search for these laws. For
Einstein, discerning the laws of nature was a way to discover how God thinks.^10
But does the universe have a purpose? Is there meaning to our existence?
Why should we live ethically? Here, cosmology cannot help us very much.
Darwin intensifies our problem. Are we different from other animals? Can we
transcend violence and savagery? As the wife of an Anglican bishop remarked
upon hearing of Darwin’s theory: “Descended from apes! My dear, let us hope
that it is not true; but if it is, let us pray that it will not become generally
known.”^11 Her comment echoes the fear that knowing the true nature of our
ancestors threatens to unravel the social fabric.
We have lost our myth. A myth is a story, imagined or true, that helps us
make our experience comprehensible by offering a construction of reality. It is
a narrative that wrests order from chaos. We are not content to see events as
unconnected, as inexplicable. We crave to understand the underlying order in
the world. A myth tells us why things are the way they are and where they
came from. Such an account is not only comfortable, assuring, and socially
useful, it is essential. Without a myth, there is no meaning or purpose to life.
There is just vast emptiness.
Myths do more than explain. They guide mental processes, conditioning
how we think, even how we perceive. Myths come to life by serving as models
for human behavior. On Friday evening, as my family beginsShabbat(the
Sabbath), I sometimes imagine God, having created the world in one very
packed week, finally taking a break. According to the Bible,Shavat va-yinnafash,
“God rested and was refreshed.”^12 This mythical image enables me to pause,
to slow down, and appreciate creation. By observingShabbat,I am imitating
the divine. Order reemerges out of the impending chaos of life.
What do we do when the myths of tradition have been undone, when the
God of the Bible seems so unbelievable? Is there really someone “up there” in
control, charting the course of history, reaching down to rescue those in need,
tallying up our good and bad deeds for reward and punishment? Many people
have shed the security of traditional belief; they are more likely to experience
a gaping, aching void than the satisfying fullness of God’s presence. If they
believe in anything, perhaps it’s science and technology. And what does science
provide in exchange for this belief? Progress in every field except for one: the
ultimate meaning of life. Some scientists insist that there is no meaning. As